A number of Cumbria’s food and drink producers have been awarded Great Taste awards for their products this year.
More than 15,000 products have been judged for this year’s awards and the county’s food producers have been rewarded with a clutch of stars.
Cumbria’s Hawkshead Relish have collected six new stars at this year’s 2021 Guild of Fine Food Great Taste awards.
After achieving a raft of plaudits for their new sauce collection in 2020 the bold decision was taken to add another sauce to the range for 2021.
Already in development, Hot Beetroot Ketchup, was further refined before being submitted to this year’s judging round to see if it could continue the company’s winning streak, joining Smoky Mustard Sauce, Spiced Mango Ketchup and Posh Pickle Sauce as Great Taste Award winners.
Happily, all the extra effort paid off and Hot Beetroot Ketchup collected two Great Taste stars, which means the hugely innovative sauce collection now holds a grand total of seven stars across the board.
But that’s not all, four other products from the extensive Relish range also picked up Great Taste awards this year, including Relish’s Salted Caramel Sauce, Raspberry and Vanilla Jam, Dijon Mustard and BBQ Sauce, with each collecting one star apiece bringing the Cumbrian condiment makers haul of Great Taste accolades up to 78 won in recent years.
Maria Whitehead, co-owner of Hawkshead Relish, said: ‘’It’s always wonderful to receive good news, especially when it comes to Great Taste awards, which are in effect the Oscars of the food and drink industry.
“It has been a challenging year but the sheer hard work and determination of the team has got us through. Adding six more Great Taste stars is a great way of recognising all their expertise and dedication and is without doubt a tremendous boost for us all.’’
Chopping Block’s fine sausages make their mark
The Chopping Block of Penrith have gained two Great Taste awards for their traditionally made sausages.
After opening in June 2019, The Chopping Block has steadily built a strong reputation for its exceptional produce, having previously won the accolade of UK’s Best New Butchery 2020.
Owner Chris Clough said: “I’ve always thought that the mark of a good butcher is the quality of their sausages. It’s our bread and butter and we’ve worked hard creating what we think is the ultimate traditional Cumberland Sausage. To win a star for them is a real pat on the back!”
As well as winning a star for their traditional Cumberland Sausage, the team have also won a star for their Westmorland Sausages.
Chris added: “Our Westmorland Sausages are hands down our best-selling sausage. Traditionally linked by hand and a little herbier than our Cumberlands, they’re such a well balanced and versatile sausage. Our customers can’t get enough of them!”
Ginger Bakers shows they have Great Taste
Kendal’s Ginger Bakers, owned by Lisa Smith has picked up three new Great Taste awards.
Ginger Bakers collected a 1-star Great Taste award for their Luxury Brandy and Orange Mince Pies, their Lemon, Pistachio and Ginger Blondie and their Gin, Clementine and Cranberry Fruit Cake, bringing their total tally up to 18 Great Taste awards won since 2006.
Lisa Smith, owner of Ginger Bakers, said: “Great Taste awards some of the most sought-after food and drink awards, because they highlight truly outstanding products and demonstrate to consumers that the products lucky enough to win an award have received a reliable stamp of approval.
“Winning an award like this in the aftermath of the last 18 months is a huge boost to us all, not only that it’s hugely important as winning can open all sorts of potential business opportunities for a family business like ours.’’
Organised by The Guild of Fine Food, Great Taste is the world’s largest, longest standing and most respected food accreditation scheme for artisan and speciality food producers.
Coffee maker’s Great Taste
The team at Lake District based tea and coffee merchants John Farrer & Co, Kendal, have been awarded a 1-star Great Taste award.
The team were awarded an internationally recognised award for Farrer’s No1 blended coffee, which brings their total number of Great Taste accolades up to four so far.
For over two centuries John Farrer’s Signature blend of high grown Arabica beans has captivated coffee drinkers. Carefully sourced from some of the world’s finest coffee regions, Farrer’s No. 1 Blend is roasted by a team of experts to deliver a coffee with a superbly well-rounded body, vibrant acidity, flavours of chocolate and nuts with citrus fruit top notes.
Dave Walsh, Farrer’s general manager, commented: “We are delighted to have won another Great Taste award, adding to the three we won last year.
“These awards acknowledge the hard work of our team, but they also show that we are creating coffees that people enjoy and are doing justice to the tea and coffee that we source and roast.’’
Maryport’s Taste of the Lakes awarded
Taste of the Lakes Royal Fillet of Rope-hung Smoked Salmon, Game & Prune Terrine and Venison & Port Pate produced by Harbourside Products of Maryport have been awarded a 1-star and 2-star awards by Great Taste.
The Hodgson/Heywood family have been smoking salmon in Maryport for over 35 years and across two generations.
Cousins Richard Hodgson and John Heywood are co-directors of the business.
John said: “The Taste of the Lakes products have won awards going back many years, but we are particular proud of achieving this award for our smoked salmon – as a family we have been smoking salmon in Maryport for a long time and we have a loyal, skilled and long-serving workforce that play a massive part in producing our salmon.”
Richard added: “Our pates and terrines are a very important part of what we make here, and it is wonderful to get this recognition of the quality we have always aimed for. The GTA badge will help us spread the word about what we make here in Maryport, and boost the distribution and availability of our Cumbrian produce.”
New flavours at Lakes Ice Cream have Great Taste
Kendal’s Lakes Ice Cream have been awarded three Great Taste Awards for three brand new flavours within its luxury range.
It has received one star accolades for their Cartmel Sticky Toffee Pudding, Kendal Mintcake and Speculoos (Biscoff) ice creams.
Managing director James Stephens said: “We are proud to have received three Great Taste awards for this year, to add to the four that we were awarded in previous years.
“The team have worked so hard to perfect our new luxury flavours and to receive such positive feedback from the judges is extremely valuable to us. It confirms to our whole team that we are doing an exceptional job and our handcrafted products are being recognised for their superb quality and stunning flavours.”
Lakeland Artisan picks up 10 stars in Great Taste awards – Read more here
